Special Quality Inspections Initiated for 17 Highway Projects with Low Bids

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has initiated special quality inspections of 17 under-construction National Highway projects where the accepted bid value was more than 15% below the estimated project cost. The inspections are being undertaken in addition to NHAI’s regular quality checks and are intended to identify deficiencies at an early stage and facilitate timely corrective action.

The projects were selected using three criteria: a construction cost exceeding ₹500 crore, a tender discount of more than 15% and physical progress between 35% and 80%. The criteria are intended to focus the inspections on projects at a critical stage of construction while adopting a data-driven approach to quality monitoring.

The selected projects comprise greenfield and access-controlled corridors, bypasses and four-laning and six-laning works across Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Andhra Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Punjab, Haryana, Gujarat and Uttar Pradesh. Projects covered include the Tumkur-Nelamangala six-laning project in Karnataka, the Durg-Raipur Bypass in Chhattisgarh and sections of the Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway.

NHAI has constituted specialised inspection teams led by 39 experienced and retired engineers from government organisations, including the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, Ministry of Railways, Ministry of Defence and State Public Works Departments. Technical experts will also support the teams during the inspections.

The inspection teams will assess construction against approved drawings, technical specifications, contractual requirements and project-specific quality plans. The exercise will also examine the quality of construction materials, workmanship, construction methods and records relating to sampling and testing, together with road safety arrangements, traffic management and environmental safeguards, where applicable.

Any work found to be below the prescribed standards will be identified for corrective action under the applicable contract provisions. The exercise is also intended to identify recurring quality issues and construction practices and areas where greater accountability may be required from contractors, consultants and other project stakeholders.

The first round of inspections is scheduled to be completed by December 2026, following which the identified projects will be re-inspected after six months by a different team of experts. The second inspection is intended to verify continued compliance with applicable construction standards and the effectiveness of corrective measures.